[2009 trends] Doom and gloom and the inevitable boom

It is amazing how, as a business, and as an industry, we lose the confidence so quickly and so dramatically when bad news globally becomes local. We read about it, we hear about it, watch it on TV, our friends talk about it and inevitably, we, too, believe it.

But now is a time to take stock, to step back, and to plan. To innovate, and to be imaginative, because, after all, now is the time to shift the status quo. These times provide the opportunity to change the way we do business, the way we approach brands, products and all that is required in order to make and sustain their profitability.

See a radical shift

2009 will be a year, I predict, that will see a radical shift in the traditional way that we have played. We will see new agencies being created. Small and niche, distinctive and alternative. We will see agencies emerging and changing, relying more on innovation and motivation and focusing less on multinational fear.

This is a time for dare devils and dreamers, those that swim against the flow and those that have the resolve and energy to believe in their own worth. In these times, not unlike past history, when times are tough, art gets brilliant. Innovation becomes essential. And those that can innovate, and be exceptionally and extraordinarily creative, will always benefit.

I predict that we will see new shops that come from a sense of survival, and are born from innovation and out of necessity.

These will be young startups that will change our industry in anticipation of the boom, and they will be the first to benefit on the up side, which inevitably comes. These will be the startup agencies that will hurt, disturb and disrupt the traditional mainstream agencies and in turn will be the agencies of a future, either by virtue of being bought and or realigning to the multinational and global powerhouses that have traditionally dominated our industry, over the last 15 years.

Without these upstarts and their collective energy, the existing mega agencies risk all.

One-to-one

My second prediction is that those who will really benefit and get ahead will be those that value and take cognisance of the individual. More and more brands need to communicate on a one-to-one level. No longer is it going to be okay just to mass brand and attack collective target audiences. The people of our world will more and more want communication that is personalised, relevant and provides product and or service that meets the lifestage that they are in. These will not be your traditional advertising agencies or direct response agencies, or, for that matter, any agency that we know and understand today. These will be agencies called MXit it and Facebook, Sony and Nintendo, but more likely something we've yet to hear about, but will be very exciting to our industry, when we do.

2009 will belong to the brave. The risk-takers, the daredevils and dreamers. Those who will change, innovate and fundamentally alter the marketing landscape as we know and understand it today. These are the entrepreneurs, the young, both at heart and in age, who will show us a new path, a new direction and a whole new way to brand growth and communication impact.

This year will see the advent of a completely new client. A client that understand accountability and the need for innovation and all that a cynical, intelligent and educated individual requires and demands of brands. When times are hard, cash-strapped consumers will still spend on brands they love, respect and which deliver. These marketers, I predict, will be the ones that are first to provide the opportunities to the new startups of our industry and or to those agencies that are taking cognisance of the fact that, with doom and gloom, comes responsibility and accountability and a fundamental change in the way our industry operates. These will be the marketers that have the courage and the commitment to build brand growth through trying times. They will also be future leaders of all the globe's major brands. I further predict during this time that the old marketing guard will change, shift or die.

More important than ever

As a consumer, I may be under financial duress, but let me tell you, more than ever, who I am, what I stand for and the brands that I choose to associate myself with are now more important than ever. I don't necessarily just have the cash to spend on any old brand. What I choose to spend on has to be relevant, has to speak my language and above all needs to talk to me. This is a time when brand relevance and association are paramount to the consumer, and I predict the demise of many a brand that doesn't take this into consideration.

The winners of the 2009 battle I predict will be those warriors in the advertising agencies, the marketing and brand departments that take cognisance of the consumer, their individuality and their needs. Times may now be tough, but this is when the battle for brand loyalty is won and lost. The brands that support me (now as a consumer) I will in turn support.

I predict that social values, family values and brand values will be of crucial importance moving forward. A brand's BEE status, a brand's community involvement et cetera will become vital.

Price fixing and anti competitive behaviour and the like are not things brands need to be associated with during this time. In fact, quite the opposite. The brands that are perceived to be cutting costs, providing promotions and generally making products more accessible, will be the long term winners come boom time. This is the time for brands to be highly responsible, highly sensitive and more specifically be perceived to be giving back as much as possible to their respective consumers. As an industry, we need to be encouraging our clients' and their respective brands' more and more, to be more and more socially responsible and community relevant.

2009 will be, without doubt, a year for those with courage. With commitment. Bravery. A year for those who resist the temptation to be sucked up into the doom and gloom syndrome, but rather approach our industry from a completely different and distinctive angle. For those who think smartly and succinctly and prepare brands for boom time. Watch this space. It could be great. I predict it will be. For some.